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Bells Mill Elementary

Public Grades PK, KG-5

30^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 865 Maryland Elementary Schools

Better than 97% of Maryland elementary schools

Summary

Bells Mill Elementary is a highly-regarded public elementary school in Potomac, Maryland, serving 591 students from pre-kindergarten through 5th grade. As part of the Montgomery County Public Schools district, which is ranked 8th out of 25 districts in Maryland, Bells Mill consistently ranks among the top elementary schools in the state, with exceptional academic performance and low chronic absenteeism rates.

Bells Mill Elementary's students excel on the MCAP (Maryland Comprehensive Assessment Program) exams, with proficiency rates significantly higher than the county and state averages across all grade levels and subject areas. The school also maintains a relatively low student-teacher ratio of 16.1 to 16.5 students per teacher, and spends significantly more per student, ranging from $13,995 to $16,953, compared to the county and state averages. These factors suggest that Bells Mill has access to substantial resources and funding, which may contribute to its strong academic outcomes.

Compared to nearby schools, such as Wyngate Elementary and Farmland Elementary, Bells Mill Elementary outperforms many of its peers in academic achievement, with higher proficiency rates on the MCAP exams across all grade levels and subject areas. The school has maintained its high performance over the years, with a 5-star rating from SchoolDigger and consistently ranking among the top 20-30 elementary schools in Maryland.

570

Students ?

16.3

Student/teacher ratio ?

$16,953

Per pupil spending ?

14.9%

Free/discounted lunch ?

8225 Bells Mill Rd
Potomac, MD 20854-4066

(240) 740-0480

District: Montgomery County Public Schools

Students who attend Bells Mill Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Cabin John Middle
High:	Winston Churchill High

Racial breakdown:

White:

41.6%

Asian:

27.2%

African American:

13.0%

See top rated Maryland elementary schools

Compare Bells Mill Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 97th percentile in 2015 → 97th in 2025

Strengths

✓Test scores above the Maryland average (73% vs 38% meeting standards)

✓Ranks in the top 3% of Maryland elementary schools

✓Among the top-ranked schools in Montgomery County Public Schools

Worth a look

!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school73%

District avg46%

Maryland avg38%

30^th of 865

Maryland public elementary schools ?

Top 3%▼ down 1 pts since 2015

See the entire ranking list of Maryland Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

12^th of 131Elementary Schools in the Montgomery County Public Schools

8^th of 25Montgomery County Public Schools among Maryland districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Maryland percentile	Rating
2025	95.9	30 of 865	96.5%	★★★★★
2024	95.7	31 of 859	96.4%	★★★★★
2023	97.6	15 of 855	98.2%	★★★★★
2022	97.3	15 of 862	98.3%	★★★★★
2021	97.8	17 of 802	97.9%	★★★★★
2019	95.4	33 of 853	96.1%	★★★★★
2018	95.3	36 of 857	95.8%	★★★★★
2017	96.2	20 of 847	97.6%	★★★★★
2016	95.9	19 of 845	97.8%	★★★★★
2015	95.9	24 of 859	97.2%	★★★★★
2014	86.0	54 of 867	93.8%	★★★★★
2013	82.4	97 of 847	88.5%	★★★★☆
2012	84.4	50 of 857	94.2%	★★★★★
2011	85.5	45 of 853	94.7%	★★★★★
2010	82.1	92 of 855	89.2%	★★★★☆
2009	83.0	83 of 850	90.2%	★★★★★
2008	86.0	40 of 838	95.2%	★★★★★
2007	5.2	776 of 818	5.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2006	13.0	714 of 804	11.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2005	12.5	724 of 805	10.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2004	8.0	740 of 803	7.8%	☆☆☆☆☆

Asian

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Maryland percentile	Rating
2021	78.7	23 of 128	82.0%	★★★★☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Maryland percentile	Rating
2021	97.1	14 of 796	98.2%	★★★★★

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Maryland percentile	Rating
2021	96.5	22 of 788	97.2%	★★★★★

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Maryland percentile	Rating
2021	85.4	50 of 528	90.5%	★★★★★

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

Female (2021)98th percentile~ school

Male (2021)97th percentile~ school

White (2021)91st percentile-7 vs school

Asian (2021)82nd percentile-16 vs school

By subject vs Maryland (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts83%+32 vs state

Mathematics71%+45 vs state

Science51%+25 vs state

5.0

1 rating

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3★0

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1★0

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Schools Near Bells Mill Elementary

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				MCAP Mathematics (2025)				MCAP English Language Arts (2025)				MCAP Science (2025)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2024)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	MCAP Mathematics 3rd Grade	MCAP Mathematics 4th Grade	MCAP Mathematics 5th Grade	MCAP Mathematics All Grades	MCAP English Language Arts 3rd Grade	MCAP English Language Arts 4th Grade	MCAP English Language Arts 5th Grade	MCAP English Language Arts All Grades	MCAP Science 5th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Bells Mill Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	8225 Bells Mill Rd	Potomac	20854	Montgomery County	Montgomery County Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(240) 740-0480	570	35	16.3	14.9%	237 (41.6%)	74 (13.0%)	55 (9.6%)	155 (27.2%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	47 (8.2%)	95.9	30^th of 865 public elementary schools	96.5%		95.7	31^st of 859 public elementary schools	96.4%	1	75.3	77.8	62.5	71.4	84.5	88.9	76.9	83.0	51.0	$16,953	$916	$16,038
Seven Locks Elementary	Public	K-5	9500 Seven Locks Road	Bethesda	20817	Montgomery County	Montgomery County Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(240) 740-0940	376	25	14.8	7.2%	196 (52.1%)	25 (6.6%)	45 (12.0%)	81 (21.5%)	2 (0.5%)	3 (0.8%)	24 (6.4%)	97.8	10^th of 865 public elementary schools	98.8%		98.2	6^th of 859 public elementary schools	99.3%	4	83.3	87.7	72.5	80.7	83.3	82.5	89.7	85.3	60.9	$18,618	$780	$17,838
Beverly Farms Elementary	Public	K-5	8501 Post Oak Road	Potomac	20854	Montgomery County	Montgomery County Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(240) 740-0200	526	31	16.9	8.6%	245 (46.6%)	40 (7.6%)	38 (7.2%)	156 (29.7%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	45 (8.6%)	97.1	13^th of 865 public elementary schools	98.5%		96	28^th of 859 public elementary schools	96.7%	15	76.9	73.3	68.9	73.0	88.8	85.7	82.9	85.8	56.2	$17,897	$847	$17,050
Farmland Elementary	Public	K-5	7000 Old Gate Road	Rockville	20852	Montgomery County	Montgomery County Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(240) 740-0660	847	54	15.7	19.5%	337 (39.8%)	79 (9.3%)	117 (13.8%)	253 (29.9%)	4 (0.5%)	1 (0.1%)	56 (6.6%)	86.4	119^th of 865 public elementary schools	86.2%		86.2	110^th of 859 public elementary schools	87.2%	9	68.7	51.1	56.8	58.7	67.7	68.9	64.8	67.2	43.2	$17,149	$953	$16,195
Cold Spring Elementary	Public, Magnet	K-5	9201 Falls Chapel Way	Potomac	20854	Montgomery County	Montgomery County Public Schools	No	Yes	No	No	(240) 740-4390	362	22	16.5	7.7%	156 (43.1%)	25 (6.9%)	31 (8.6%)	131 (36.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (5.2%)	98.3	4^th of 865 public elementary schools	99.5%		98.2	7^th of 859 public elementary schools	99.2%	3	88.9	86.2	82.4	85.5	83.3	83.9	84.9	84.2	74.2	$18,908	$736	$18,172
Ritchie Park Elementary	Public	K-5	1514 Dunster Rd	Rockville	20854	Montgomery County	Montgomery County Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(240) 740-6310	342	24	14.4	12.6%	167 (48.8%)	35 (10.2%)	41 (12.0%)	73 (21.3%)	3 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	22 (6.4%)	94.3	42^nd of 865 public elementary schools	95.1%		95.8	29^th of 859 public elementary schools	96.6%	13	78.2	67.2	63.2	69.5	77.8	77.0	78.2	77.6	49.1	$19,604	$1,076	$18,528
Wayside Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	10011 Glen Rd	Potomac	20854	Montgomery County	Montgomery County Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(240) 740-0240	465	35	13.2	9.9%	169 (36.3%)	32 (6.9%)	43 (9.2%)	187 (40.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	34 (7.3%)	98.4	3^rd of 865 public elementary schools	99.7%		97.5	12^th of 859 public elementary schools	98.6%	9	86.8	75.0	83.3	82.7	88.8	85.5	86.9	87.3	65.5	$21,468	$1,075	$20,392
Ashburton Elementary	Public	K-5	6314 Lone Oak Dr	Bethesda	20817	Montgomery County	Montgomery County Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(240) 740-1300	871	49	17.7	21.5%	289 (33.2%)	177 (20.3%)	166 (19.1%)	153 (17.6%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	83 (9.5%)	84.9	140^th of 865 public elementary schools	83.8%		83.3	140^th of 859 public elementary schools	83.7%		66.5	50.7	56.8	58.3	68.6	56.3	66.5	64.3	45.0	$16,391	$830	$15,561
Luxmanor Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	6201 Tilden Ln	Rockville	20852	Montgomery County	Montgomery County Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(240) 740-0820	684	50	13.6	27.5%	197 (28.8%)	125 (18.3%)	173 (25.3%)	127 (18.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	62 (9.1%)	80	183^rd of 865 public elementary schools	78.8%		80.1	167^th of 859 public elementary schools	80.6%	16	67.7	52.9	49.6	56.2	64.6	58.5	55.5	59.2	37.2	$20,171	$1,079	$19,092
Potomac Elementary	Public, Magnet	K-5	10311 River Rd	Potomac	20854	Montgomery County	Montgomery County Public Schools	No	Yes	No	No	(240) 740-4360	475	28	17.0	7.6%	186 (39.2%)	41 (8.6%)	40 (8.4%)	159 (33.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	49 (10.3%)	97	16^th of 865 public elementary schools	98.2%		96.6	23^rd of 859 public elementary schools	97.3%	7	83.1	76.7	80.0	79.8	83.1	80.0	76.7	79.8	62.9	$17,815	$745	$17,070

Frequently Asked Questions about Bells Mill Elementary

What is the racial makeup of Bells Mill Elementary?

Students at Bells Mill Elementary are 42% White, 27% Asian, 13% African American, 10% Hispanic, 8% Two or more races.

What schools do graduates of Bells Mill Elementary attend?

Students who attend Bells Mill Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : Cabin John Middle
High : Winston Churchill High

Is Bells Mill Elementary a good school?

Yes! Bells Mill Elementary is one of the best elementary schools in the state. It ranks 30^th of 865 Maryland elementary schools.

What district is Bells Mill Elementary in?

Montgomery County Public Schools

How many students attend Bells Mill Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 570 students attended Bells Mill Elementary.

Rate Bells Mill Elementary!

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SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Maryland State Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.